George Harrison biography | The Beatles Bible George Harrison was lead guitarist, songwriter and singer with The Beatles. Although often overshadowed by the partnership of Lennon and McCartney during the band's lifetime, he emerged as a significant talent in his own right. The early years Harrison was born on 25 February 1943 in the family home at 12 Arnold Grove, Wavertree, Liverpool. His parents were Harold and Louise Harrison, who had roots in Ireland. They had three other children: Louise, Harry and Peter, all of whom were older than George. In 1950 the family moved to 25 Upton Green in Speke. George went to school at Dovedale Road, where he passed his 11 Plus and gained a place at the Liverpool Institute for Boys, a local grammar school. He attended the Institute between 1954 and 1959. Not an especially gifted child academically, Harrison struggled as a student and left without any qualifications. He had trouble relating to his teachers, and insisted on wearing tight jeans and long hair, much to his parents consternation.

In 1959 Harrison formed a skiffle group, The Rebels, with his brother Peter and a friend, Arthur Kelly. Harrison's mother bought him a guitar for £3, and the group's debut gig at the British Legion club in Speke earned them 10 shillings. Harrison considered becoming an apprentice engineer after leaving school, but music dominated his passions and he performed with a number of fledgling groups in Liverpool. In 1958 he met the Quarrymen, whose ranks included Paul McCartney , a friend of Harrison's from the Institute. Although Harrison was considered too young to join the group, he did fill in when their regular guitarist Eric Griffiths was unavailable. Eventually he was accepted as a full member, despite the reservations of the Quarrymen founder and leader, John Lennon . Paul introduced me to George and I had to make the decision whether to let George in. I listened to George play and said, 'Play Raunchy' [a 1958 hit for saxophonist Bill Justis]. Then I said, 'OK, you can come in.' I couldn't be bothered with him when he first came around.

He used to follow me around like a bloody kid, hanging around all the time. He was a kid who played guitar and he was a friend of Paul's which made it easier. It took me years to come around to him, to start considering him as an equal. John Lennon The band became Johnny and the Moondogs, and later the Silver Beetles. Their first trip to Hamburg in August 1960 took place while Harrison was just 17, and the Reeperbahn, the red light district where they played, proved an educative experience: "Everybody around the district were homosexuals, transvestites, pimps and hookers and I was in the middle of that, aged 17," he said. The first trip ended in Harrison's deportation for working under-age. When they returned in March 1961 The Beatles had become more assured as performers, and in June cut their first single, My Bonnie , as the backing band for Tony Sheridan . For this they were paid 300 marks with no royalties. At the band's first recording session for EMI, producer George Martin tried to ease the band's nerves by saying, "Let me know if there's anything you don't like".

"Well, for a start," replied Harrison, "I don't like your tie." This led to a succession of jokes being cracked in the studio, which endeared the band to the EMI staff. As Beatlemania took hold, John Lennon and Paul McCartney dominated the group's output: "There was an embarrassing period when George's songs weren't that good and nobody wanted to say anything," John Lennon later said. "He just wasn't in the same league for a long time - that's not putting him down, he just hadn't had the practice as a writer that we'd had." Known as "the quiet one" of The Beatles, Harrison's first published composition was Don't Bother Me , which he wrote while ill in a hotel room in Bournemouth in the summer of 1963. It appeared on their second album With The Beatles . Harrison was later dismissive of Don't Bother Me, saying "It was a fairly crappy song. I forgot all about it completely once it was on the album...

At least it showed me that all I needed to do was keep on writing and then maybe eventually I would write something good." During The Beatles' first US tour, Rickenbacker gave Harrison a 12-string electric guitar - a 360/12 model. The instrument became characteristic of The Beatles early to mid 1960s sound, particularly on the A Hard Day's Night album, and influenced many other bands including The Byrds. Harrison sang at least one song on all The Beatles' albums, though as a songwriter he remained in the shadow of Lennon and McCartney. Following Don't Bother Me, his next self-penned songs were I Need You and You Like Me too Much , on 1965's Help! album. Indian music George Harrison's interest in Indian music was awoken by a scene in the Help! film. While making the film, a Hindu devotee gave each member of The Beatles a book on reincarnation, which led to a fascination with many aspects of Eastern religion, culture and philosophy. The Byrds' David Crosby introduced him to the music of Ravi Shankar during a US tour in 1965, and he became fascinated by the sitar.

He became friends with Shankar, who became his sitar teacher. Harrison became the first Western musician to play a sitar on a pop record. The song was Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) , on the 1965 album Rubber Soul . After Norwegian Wood I met Ravi Shankar in London for dinner. He offered to give me instruction in the basics of the sitar. It was the first time I had ever really learnt music with a bit of discipline. Then I listened to Indian music for the next two years and hardly touched the guitar except for recording. George Harrison For 1966's Revolver he recorded Love You To , which featured no Western instrumentation. Following the recording of that album, he went on a pilgrimage to India with his wife Pattie . The couple had met during the filming of A Hard Day's Night, and married on 21 January 1966. Pattie introduced George to transcendental meditation, and in 1968 they, along with the rest of The Beatles and their partners, travelled to India to study with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi . Although the band later fell out with the Maharishi, Harrison continued his interest in Eastern philosophy.

He embraced the Hare Krishna tradition, and in 1969 produced the single Hare Krishna Mantra by the Radha Krishna Temple.

George Harrison (1943 - 2001) - Genealogy George Harrison Share your family tree and photos with the people you know and love Build your family tree online Share photos and videos 12 Arnold Grove, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, United Kingdom Death: in Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, United States Cause of death: Metastatic non-small cell lung cancer Immediate Family: Brother of <private> Harrison; <private> Harrison and <private> Harrison Occupation: Rock guitarist, singer-songwriter and film producer, Musician Managed by: Feb 24 1943 - Liverpool, England Death: Harold Harrison, Louise Harrison (born French) Siblings: Harry Harrison, Peter H Harrison, Louise Harrison Wife: Patricia Anne Harrison (born Boyd) Child: Feb 25 1943 - Liverpool England Death: Nov 29 2001 - Beverly Hills Parents: Harold Hargreaves Harrison, Louise Harrison (born French) Siblings: Louise Caldwell (born Harrison), Peter Henry Harrison, <Private> Harrison Wife: Olivia Trinidad Harrison (born Arias) Wife: Patricia Anne Harrison (born Boyd) Son: Cause of death: Lung cancer - Nov 29

 2001 - Beverly Hills Parents: Harold Hargreaves Harrison, Louise French Siblings: Peter Harrison, Harry Harrison, Louise Harrison Wife: Pattie Boyd, Olivia Trinidad Arias Son: Harold Harrison, Loiuse Harrison (born French) Siblings: Louise Harrison, Peter Harrison, Harry Harrison Wife: Patricia Ann Harrison (born Boyd) Child: Harold Harrison, Louise Harrison (born French) Siblings: Peter Harrison, Louise Harrison, Harry Harrison Wife: Patricia Ann Harrison (born Boyd) Child: Harold Hargreaves Harrison, Louise Harrison (born French) Siblings: Peter Harrison, Louise Harrison, Harry Harrison Wife: Patricia Ann Harrison (born Boyd) Child: Peter Harrison, Harry Harrison, Louise Harrison Ex-wife: Feb 25 1943 - Wavertree, Liverpool Death: Mar 24 1943 - Wavertree, Liverpool, England Death: Nov 30 2001 - Los Angeles, CA Parents: Harold Hargreaves Harrison, Louise Harrison (born French) Siblings: <Private> Harrison, <Private> Harrison, <Private> Caldwell (born Harrison) Partner: Nov 29 2001 - Los Angeles Parents:

 Harold Hargreaves Harrison, Louise French Ex-wife: step-parent About George Harrison George Harrison was an English rock guitarist, singer-songwriter and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist in The Beatles.

Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian mysticism, and helped broaden the horizons of the other Beatles, as well as those of their Western audience. Following the band's breakup, he had a successful career as a solo artist and later as part of the Traveling Wilburys, and also as a film and record producer. Harrison is listed number 21 in Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 100 Best Guitarists of All Time". Although most of The Beatles' songs were written by Lennon and McCartney, Harrison generally wrote one song per side from the Help! album onwards. His later compositions with The Beatles include "Here Comes the Sun", "Something", "I Me Mine", "Taxman", "Within You Without You", "Think For Yourself", "If I Needed Someone", "The Inner Light", "Old Brown Shoe", "Piggies", "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and "Savoy Truffle".

By the time of the band's breakup, Harrison had accumulated a backlog of material, which he then released as the acclaimed and successful triple album All Things Must Pass in 1970, from which came two singles: a double A-side single, "My Sweet Lord" backed with "Isn't It a Pity", and "What Is Life". In addition to his solo work, Harrison co-wrote two hits for Ringo Starr, another ex-Beatle, as well as songs for the Traveling Wilburys—the supergroup he formed in 1988 with Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne and Roy Orbison. Harrison embraced Indian culture and Hinduism in the mid 1960s, and helped expand Western awareness of sitar music and of the Hare Krishna movement. With Ravi Shankar he organised a major charity concert with the 1971 Concert for Bangladesh, and is the only Beatle to have published an autobiography, with I Me Mine in 1980. Besides being a musician, he was also a record producer and co-founder of the production company HandMade Films.

In his work as a film producer, he collaborated with people as diverse as the members of Monty Python and Madonna. He was married twice, to the model Pattie Boyd in 1966, and to the record company secretary Olivia Trinidad Arias in 1978, with whom he had one son, Dhani Harrison. He was a close friend of Eric Clapton. Harrison died of lung cancer in 2001. Beatle parents? - BeatleLinks Fab Forum Beatle parents? Join Date: Mar 02, 2003 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 13,890 Beatle parents? Does anyone have much info about the Beatles parents? I've heard what happened to John and Paul's mothers when they were teens, of course, and know John's father never bothered to get to know him. But I haven't heard much about the others. Does anyone know what their lives were like after the Beatles got famous, when they passed away, are any of them still alive? Thanks in advance for your help!

[img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Join Date: Jan 11, 2002 Posts: 13,046 * Premium Member * Re: Beatle parents? George's parents were really fond of the fans and even spent time writing fans, inviting them into their home, everything...so sweet. His parents moved into a house George bought for them in 1965 in Appleton, Warrington. Later, after his Mom passed, his Dad lived with him in Friar Park. The song Deep Blue was inspired by his Mom...visiting her in the hospital as she passed from Brain cancer. His Dad passed over in May of 1978. Yeah, the Harrison's were very 'instrumental' (hee!) in giving the young boys someplace to play and moral support. Louise was very 'hip' and Harold seemed really nice, from what I read. He was a busdriver, early on. I think Harold had a pretty good life with George (and his brothers living at the Park as well)....and even toured with George in 1974. Hope that helps a bit!

[img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Join Date: Jul 07, 2003 Location: USA Posts: 1,022 Re: Beatle parents? John- Alfred and Julia...Julia died in 1958, she gave birth to three daughters after having John (her first daughter she had given up for adoption after having an affair with a soldier). Alfred later remarried in 1968 and had two sons. He died in 1976 after reconnecting with John Paul- Jim and Mary...Mary died in 1956. She was a nurse. As for Jim, he was a cotton sellsman and a sometime musician. Jim remarried in 1964 to Angela but died in 1976 George- Harold and Louise. Hari's Chick pretty much covered it, Louise died in 1970 (on Ringo's birthday!!!) of a brain tumor and Harry, who never remarried, died in 1978. Ringo- Dick and Elise...not much known about Dick, I heard that he remarried and had some children and was a window cleaner.

I think he died, but not sure when. As for Elise, she too remarried but died in 1987. Ringo was very close to his step-father, who died in 1994. The only (step) parents that are living are Angela McCartney and Pauline Lennon-Stone. Join Date: Mar 02, 2003 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 13,890 Re: Beatle parents? Thanks Enchanting and HC! That was a big help, you guys definately know your stuff. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] Join Date: May 23, 2001 Posts: 37,478 Quote: Originally Posted By Hari's Chick: George's parents were really fond of the fans and even spent time writing fans, inviting them into their home, everything...so sweet. His parents moved into a house George bought for them in 1965 in Appleton, Warrington. Later, after his Mom passed, his Dad lived with him in Friar Park. The song Deep Blue was inspired by his Mom...visiting her in the hospital as she passed from Brain cancer.

His Dad passed over in May of 1978. Yeah, the Harrison's were very 'instrumental' (hee!) in giving the young boys someplace to play and moral support. Louise was very 'hip' and Harold seemed really nice, from what I read. He was a busdriver, early on. I think Harold had a pretty good life with George (and his brothers living at the Park as well)....and even toured with George in 1974. Hope that helps a bit! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] <font size="2" face="Tahoma, Arial, sans-serif">I absolutely LOVE George stories because the youngest Beatle was plainly so well loved. It is those early loving experiences that helped shape George into the truly intense and special person that he was and again, that is so beautifully expressed in his music. This makes me feel SO good. Harold & Louise Sr. ran a dance club before George was born...music was very much a part of the future Beatle's life. In Anthology, George talks about how they always had a radio on and people gathered about the table, talking and laughing...I like that.

[size="1"][ Dec 16, 2003, 05:32 PM: Message Edited By: beatlebangs1964 ][/size] Join Date: Mar 02, 2003 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 13,890 Re: Beatle parents? Louise and Harold sound like great parents, although I was always surprised when George said they supported his rebellious attitude! I had thought of them as kind of square people, but I guess they were more into the changing times than most folks. There isn't much known about Ringo's parents, is there? I've heard stories about John, Paul, and George's childhood, but all I've really heard about Ringo's is that he was sick most of the time. Until Enchanting posted here, I didn't even know his parents' names! [img]graemlins/blush4.gif[/img] Join Date: Jun 16, 2003 Location: CA * BeatleLinks Donor * Re: Beatle parents? I guess you're right, there isn't much on Ringo's parents other than the basics.

His parents divorced when he was three, and then Elsie had to work as a barmaid to provide for him. I think she left him with his grandparents when she was at work. I do know that he called his step-dad a "step-ladder," though! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] From all that I hear about George's parents, they seem like great people. I thought it was adorable when I read that his mom answered all the fan mail that came to their house for a few years. Join Date: May 23, 2001 Posts: 37,478 Quote: Originally Posted By laura: From all that I hear about George's parents, they seem like great people. I thought it was adorable when I read that his mom answered all the fan mail that came to their house for a few years. <font size="2" face="Tahoma, Arial, sans-serif">Elsie and Richard, Sr. married in 1936 and their 7-year union was not a match made in heaven. In Anthology, Ringo talks about staying with his paternal grandparents as a young boy and how much he loved going over there.

Anthology and Alan Clayson's biography of Ringo does a good job of covering the oldest Beatle's early years. Hunter Davies of the famous, extremely tame Authorized Biography of the Beatles, does a fair job of covering the Starkeys and Starkey-Graves unions. I read Elsie died in or about 1987 and Harry Graves in 1994. Richard Sr. remarried and remained out of public life. Unlike Alfred Lennon, Starkey Sr. never sought Ringo for personal gain. I think Harold and Louise, Sr. sounded like wonderful, loving people. George was plainly well loved and as I said in an earlier post, that was reflected in his work. It was Louise, Sr. who bought George his first guitar; encouraged him to stick with it and provided a place for him and his bandmates to practice. In many ways, the inception and later success of the Beatles can be credited to her.

I found it interesting when George is quoted in the Hunter Davies book as saying how they never discouraged him from doing anything and that as a boy, he could "smoke, have a drink or stay out all night if he wanted to" and that he'd "done it all by age 10." I find it a little surprising that he would have had that much freedom at such an early age. I always thought that claim sounded like bravado -- after all, Harrison, Sr. insisted that George follow basic rules and at least remain in school or find gainful employment. George's hair and clothing were mild forms of rebelling and he was certainly never curbed in those areas of expression. Clearly, reasonable and fair expectations were made of the young Beatle; indeed, it was their loving efforts that paid dividends with interest. Family Members Married: December 3, 1938 Alfred was a seaman and often went abroad visiting far and few in between.

After John's birth in 1940, the marriage fell apart; Alfred and Julia last saw each other in 1945 when he took John to Blackpool, England, intending to move to New Zealand but Julia was determined to keep her son; although John was living with her sister, Mimi Smith. Despite being legally married, Julia gave birth to Victoria in 1945 from a relationship and was forced to give the baby up for adoption; that same year, Julia became involved with John Albert Dykins- they had two daughters, Julia and Jacqueline. By 1958, Julia was close to her son, allowing him to rehearse with the Quarrymen at her home and attending his early gigs until she was accidentally killed by being run over by an off duty drunk policeman. Alfred and John remain estranged until John was famous with the Beatles and tried to contact in 1964 during the making of "A Hard Day's Night" but John refused. Alfred tried again in 1965 by coming to his home in Weybridge, Surrey with Cynthia letting him in where he met Julian for the first time.

Alfred remarried to Pauline Jones in 1968 and they had two sons, David and Robin. John spoke to his father a few times until Alfred died from cancer; he offered to pay for the funeral by Pauline refused. Daddy Come Home: The Untold Story of John Lennon and His Father by Alfred and Pauline Lennon Married: April 18, 1941 Jim was a fireman during the War and a Cotton salesman while Mary was a nurse and a mid-wife (help delivering babies). After the birth of their sons, the McCartneys moved often until settling down at 20 Forthlin Road in Liverpool . In 1948, Mary was diagnosed with breast cancer but was in remission until the Spring of 1956 when the cancer returned. In the Fall of 1956, Mary lost her battle with cancer; Jim took responsibility of raising his sons with the help of his sisters, Milly and Gin with the cooking and cleaning. In 1964, Jim met and remarried to Angela Stopworth Williams and adopted her daughter, Ruth Ann (born 1959).

In 1976, Jim died of cancer while Paul was on tour with Wings. Harold Hargreaves Harrison May 28, 1909 Liverpool Married: May 20, 1930 During the first six years of marriage, Harold was a seaman before leaving to work as a bus conductor. Louise was a greengrocer until she gave birth to her daughter, Louise in 1931. Harold and Louise were members of the Depot Social Club and held dancing nights. They supported George's musical career, letting the Quarrymen rehearse and Louise attending to the gigs, she was even a regular at the Cavern club. Louise embraced the fans as the Beatles got famous, inviting them into her home and corresponded to the fan mail. In 1970, Louise died and the fans were devastated. After his wife's death, Harold occasionally toured with George, staying at his home Friar until his death of emphysema in 1978, a few months before Dhani was born.

Richard Henry Parkin Starkey October 1, 1913 Liverpool, England- unknown Elise Gleave Married: October 24, 1936 Dick and Elise worked as bakers and lived with Dick's parents until they found their own home. They enjoyed going out at nights until Elise gave birth to Richard in 1940. In 1943, Dick left home and they divorced in October of that year;he visited occasionally as Elise remained close to her former in-laws and remarried in 1953 to painter Harry Graves. Dick remarried in 1962, working as a window cleaner. Other information is unknown Elise and Richie remained close until her death in the 1980s while he was estranged from his father and was very close to his stepfather Harry Graves, who died on August 27, 1994 Charles Edwin Powell c. 1901 Liverpool December 1985 Married: unknown Charles was the GEC's electrical appliance salesman while Lillian loved auction shopping and knitting.

In 1956, Charles died from lung cancer and Lillian decided to have boarders to live in the family home to help fund Cynthia to attend Liverpool College of Art. By 1961, Lillian moved to Canada as a nanny to her neice's baby until 1963 when she moved back to England to help Cynthia with Julian. Lillian moved near Weybridge in Surrey and took care of Julian with help of the Lennon's housekeeper, Dot Jarlett, when Cynthia was away with John. After Cynthia's divorce from John, Lillian remained close with Cynthia and by late 1970s, she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Cynthia took care of her mother until she died in 1985. March 1, 1962 Married: 1937 Lee was a sucessful lawyer and Louise came from a successful family as a heiress for several department stores. When their two older children were attending out-of-state colleges (John in Harvard, Linda in University of Arizona ), Lee and Louise decided one should fly alone in case a tragedy to occur so one parent can be around to look after the children.

In 1962, Louise, while en route to see John, was killed in a plane crash in Jamaica Bay . A year later, 1963, Lee remarried to Monique Schless Sprayregen. In 1965 Linda and Heather moved back to New York to stay with Lee until Linda found her own place and was working as a photographer for 'Town and Country' magazine- a career path Lee disapproved. In 1969, Lee and John were enlisted to run the Beatles' company, Apple, as legal advisors; however John Lennon, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr opted Allen Klein. Lee and John continued to legal represent Paul until Lee's death in 1991 from a stroke. Esiquiel L. Arias October 19, 1915, Mexico City, Mexico- October 24, 1998 Hawthorne, California Mary Louise March 2, 1920, Mexico City, Mexico Married: unknown Zeke and Mary Louise with their 3 of their five children immigrated from Mexico during the Mexican Revolution to California.

Zeke worked on the railroads while the family lived in the rundown labor camp La Seceron de Santa Fe. The family settled in Hawthorne in 1950 while Zeke worked as a dry cleaner and Mary Louise was a steamstress, moving from Mexico to California with their children. In 1978, Zeke and Mary Louise were the only attendees at Olivia's wedding to George Harrison, a month after Dhani's birth. Zeke died in October of 1998. February 1989 Married: unknown Beatrice's father disowned Beatrice after when she married Mark. After several years of physical and verbal abuse and many moves, Beatrice left the family in 1977 and moved in with Charles Stapley in London where Charles worked as an actor and Beatrice worked as a hospice counselor. In 1981, Beatrice reunited with her children who visited her from time to time until Mark was in prison for fraud. Heather and Beatrice's relationship was estranged as Heather grew independent after her mother left to take care of the family.

By 1988, Heather was engaged to Alfie Karmal and reunited with her mother who was preparing for surgery on her leg- which was damaged after a car accident when Heather was a child. Due to complications, Beatrice died. Heather and her father have been estranged since the 1980s and he had not met his granddaughter Beatrice before he died. , England Julia gave her up for adoption under her father's orders as she was not financial stable and caring for her son, John as well as being technically married as Victoria was a result from another relationship. Victoria was adopted by Peder and Margaret Pedersen and was renamed Ingrid Marie. In the 1960s, John was told by his Aunts that he had another sister and tried to look for her unsuccessfully; in 1966 Ingrid discovered that she was John's sister but kept quiet under her adoptive mother's request until her death in 1998. Ingrid was then living in England as a nurse and announced her identity. Ingrid has met Yoko Ono and only met her biological family of the Stanleys in 2005 although they had mentioned that she was welcome into the fold.

, England After her mother's death in 1958, Julia and Jacqui were sent to Julia's sister Harriet Birch to live and their father, John Dykins (known as Bobby) visiting. In August of 1968, Julia married Allan Baird and had lived in Ireland for many years before moving back to England ; Julia is the mother of Nicholas, Sarah, and David. Julia didn't speak to John since 1966 until 1975 when John wanted to speak to her and was trying to established contact with his family after a few years. Julia worked as a French teacher and is in contact with Julian while only meeting Sean rarely. John Lennon My Brother 1988 Imagine This: Growing Up with my Brother John Lennon 2007 , England A Photographer since he was a teenager and a sometime musician who was in the 1960s band Scaffold. Mike was married to Angela Fishwick in June of 1968 and they had three daughters, Brenna, Theran, and Abigail before divorcing in 1979.

In May of 1982, Mike married Rowena Horne and they had three sons, Josh, Sonny, and Max. Mike and Paul are close; in 2003 Mike took the first photo of Beatrice after she was born. Mike has been seen at Stella's fashion shows on occasion. July 10, 1939 New York Educated at Harvard as a lawyer, Paul, after marrying Linda, hired John as his lawyer and business manager as he is still today. Married to Jody Morrell and father of Lee, John, and Louise. After marrying Gordon Caldwell, the newlyweds moved to Benton , Illinois . In 1963, her brothers, Peter and George, traveled to stay with Louise for a few weeks. The following year, the Beatles came to New York and George fell ill; Louise traveled to nurse her brother and stayed for their tour to Washington , D.C. Louise and Gordon had two children, Gordon Jr. and Leslie before they divorced in the 1980s.

Louise participates with the Beatles conventions and in 1995, was part of saving her old home in Benton , Illinois where George stayed into a bed-breakfast, A Hard Day's Night Inn, which opened in 1996. The Inn closed in 2009. Louise now lives in Missouri. George Harrison - Biography - IMDb George Harrison Biography Showing all 121 items Jump to: Overview (4) | Mini Bio (1) | Spouse (2) | Trade Mark (4) | Trivia (91) | Personal Quotes (19) Overview (4) 5' 9¾" (1.77 m) Mini Bio (1) A master musician, a film producer and actor, best known as the lead guitarist and occasionally lead vocalist of The Beatles , George Harrison was born February 25, 1943, in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. He was also the youngest of four children, born to Harold Harrison and Louise Harrison . Like his future band mates, Harrison was not born into wealth.

Louise was largely a stay-at-home mom while her husband Harold drove a school bus for the Liverpool Institute, an acclaimed grammar school that George attended and where he first met a young classmate, Paul McCartney . By his own admission, Harrison was not much of a student and what little interest he did have for his studies washed away with his discovery of the electric guitar and American rock-'n'-roll. There were a lot of harmonies in the Harrison household. He had a knack of sorts for it by age 12 or 13, while riding a bike around his neighborhood and hearing Elvis Presley 's "Heartbreak Hotel", playing from a nearby house. By the age of 14 George--who was a fan of such legends as , Harrison, who grew up in the likes of listening to such rock legends Carl Perkins , Little Richard and Buddy Holly --had purchased his first guitar and taught himself a few chords. McCartney', who had recently joined up with another Liverpool teenager, John Lennon , in a skiffle group known as The Quarrymen, invited Harrison to see the band perform.

Harrison and Lennon had a few things in common, such as the fact that they both attended Dovedale Primary School but didn't know each other. Their paths finally crossed in early 1958. McCartney had been egging the 17-year-old Lennon to allow the 14-year-old Harrison to join the band, but Lennon was reluctant; as legend has it, after seeing McCartney and Lennon perform, George was granted an audition on the upper deck of a bus, where he wowed Lennon with his rendition of popular American rock riffs. The 17-year-old Harrison's music career was in full swing by 1960. Lennon had renamed the band The Beatles and the young group began cutting its rock teeth in the small clubs and bars around Liverpool and Hamburg, Germany. Within two years, the group had a new drummer, Ringo Starr , and a manager, Brian Epstein , a young record store owner who eventually landed the group a record contract with EMI's Parlophone label. Before the end of 1962, Harrison and The Beatles recorded a song, "Love Me Do", that landed in the UK Top 20 charts.

Early that following year, another hit, "Please Please Me," was released, followed by an album by the same name. "Beatlemania" was in full swing across England, and by early 1964, with the release of their album in the US and an American tour, it had swept across the States as well. Largely referred to as the "Quiet Beatle" Harrison took a back seat to McCartney, Lennon and, to a certain extent, Starr. Still, he could be quick-witted, even edgy. During the middle of one American tour, the group members were asked how they slept at night with long hair. From the get-go, Lennon-McCartney were primary lead vocalists. While the two spent most of the time writing their own songs, Harrison had shown an early interest in creating his own work. In the summer of 1963 he spearheaded his first song, "Don't Bother Me," which made its way on to the group's second album. From there on out, Harrison's songs were a staple of all Beatle records.

In fact, some of the group's more memorable songs--e.g., "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and "Something," which was the only Beatle song ever recorded by Frank Sinatra --were penned by Harrison. However, his influence on the group and pop music in general extended beyond just singles. In 1965, while on the set of The Beatles' second film, Help! (1965), Harrison took an interest in some of the Eastern instruments and their musical arrangements that were being used in the film. He soon developed a deep interest in Indian music. He taught himself the sitar, introducing the instrument to many western ears on Lennon's song, "Norwegian Wood"" He soon cultivated a close relationship with renowned sitar player Ravi Shankar . Other groups, including The Rolling Stones , began incorporating the sitar into some of their work. It could be argued that Harrison's experimentation with different kinds of instrumentation helped pave the way for such ground-breaking Beatle albums as "Revolver" and "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band". Harrison's interest in Indian music soon extended into a yearning to learn more about eastern spiritual practices.

In 1968 he led The Beatles on a journey to northern India to study transcendental meditation under Maharishi Mahesh Yogi . Having grown spiritually and musically since the group first started, Harrison, who wanted to include more of his material on Beatle records, was clearly uneasy with the McCartney-Lennon dominance of the group. During the "Let It Be" recording sessions in 1969, Harrison walked out, staying away for several weeks before he was coaxed to come back with the promise that the band would use more of his songs on its records. However, tensions in the group were clearly high. Lennon and McCartney had ceased writing together years before, and they, too, were feeling the need to go in a different direction. In January of 1970 the group recorded Harrison's "I Me Mine." It was the last song the four would ever record together. Three months later, McCartney announced he was leaving the band and The Beatles were officially over. After the breakup of The Beatles, Harrison pursued a solo career.

He immediately assembled a studio band consisting of ex-Beatle Starr, guitar legend Eric Clapton , keyboardist Billy Preston and others to record all the songs that had never made it on to The Beatles catalog. The result was a three-disc album, "All Things Must Pass". While one of its signature songs, "My Sweet Lord," was later deemed too similar in style to The Chiffons ' 1963 hit "He's So Fine," forcing the guitarist to cough up nearly $600,000, the album as a whole remains Harrison's most acclaimed record. Not long after the album's release, Harrison combined his charitable work and his continued passion for the east when he put together a series of ground-breaking benefit concerts at New York City's Madison Square Garden to raise money for refugees in Bangladesh. Known as the "Concert for Bangladesh", the shows, which featured Bob Dylan , Leon Russell , and Ravi Shankar, would go on to raise some $15 million for UNICEF, produced a Grammy-winning album, a successful documentary film ( The Concert for Bangladesh (1972)) and laid the groundwork for future benefit shows like "Live Aid" and "Farm Aid".

Not everything about post-Beatle life went smoothly for Harrison, though. In 1974, his marriage to Pattie Boyd, whom he'd married eight years before, ended when she left him for Eric Clapton. His studio work struggled, too, from 1973-77, starting with, "Living in the Material World", "Extra Texture," and "33 1/3," all of which failed to meet sales expectations. Following the release of that last album, Harrison took a short break from music, winding down his own label, Dark Horse Records--which he had started in 1974, and which had released albums by a number of other bands--and started his own film production company, Handmade Films. The company produced the successful Monty Python film Life of Brian (1979) and would go on to make 26 other films before Harrison sold his interest in the company in 1994. In 1979, he returned to the studio to release his self-titled album.

It was followed two years later by, "Somewhere in England," which was still being worked on at the time of John Lennon 's assassination in December of 1980. The record eventually included the Lennon tribute track, "All Those Years Ago," a song that reunited ex-Beatles Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr , along with ex- Wings members Denny Laine and Linda McCartney . While the song was a hit, the album, its predecessor and its successor, "Gone Troppo," weren't. For Harrison the lack of commercial appeal and the constant battles with music executives proved draining and prompted another studio hiatus. A comeback of sorts came in November 1987, however, with the release of the album "Cloud Nine," produced by Jeff Lynne (of Electric Light Orchestra ). The album turned out several top-charting hits, including "Got My Mind Set On You"-- remake of the 1962 song by Rudy Clark --and "When We Was Fab," a song that reflected on the life of Beatlemania, with Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney, who was dressed up as a walrus, but was a camera shy, in February 1988.

Later that year Harrison formed The Traveling Wilburys . The group consisted of Harrison, Lynne, Roy Orbison , Tom Petty and Bob Dylan , and spawned two successful albums. Buoyed by the group's commercial success, Harrison took to the road with his new bandmates in 1992, embarking on his first international tour in 18 years. Not long afterwards he was reunited with McCartney and Starr for the creation of an exhaustive three-part release of a Beatles anthology--which featured alternative takes, rare tracks and a John Lennon demo called "Free as a Bird," that the three surviving Beatles completed in the studio. The song went on to become the group's 34th Top 10 single. After that, however, Harrison largely became a homebody, keeping himself busy with gardening and his cars at his expansive and restored home in Henley-on-Thames in south Oxfordshire, England. Still, the ensuing years were not completely stress-free. In 1997, Harrison, a longtime smoker, was successfully treated for throat cancer.

Eighteen months later, his life was again put on the line when a deranged 33-year-old Beatles fan somehow managed to circumvent Harrison's intricate security system and broke into his home, attacking the musician and his wife Olivia with a knife. Harrison was treated for a collapsed lung and minor stab wounds. Olivia suffered several cuts and bruises. In May 2001, Harrison's cancer returned. There was lung surgery, but doctors soon discovered the cancer had spread to his brain. That autumn, he traveled to the US for treatment and was eventually hospitalized at the UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA. He died November 29, 2001, at ex-bandmate McCartney's house in Los Angeles, at aged 58, with his wife and son at his side. Just one year after his death, Harrison's final studio album, "Brainwashed," was released. It was produced by Lynne, Harrison's son Dhani Harrison and Harrison himself, and featured a collection of songs he'd been working at the time of his death. Dhani finished putting the album together and it was released in November of 2002.

Trivia (91) As of 1998, his older sister Louise Harrison was living in southern Illinois. A good deal of confusion as to his real birthday was solved when a family birth record noted him as being born shortly before midnight around 11:50 P.M.) on February 24th, 1943. He had believed his birthday was February 25th for his entire life. Lead guitarist of The Beatles . On 30 December 1999, an intruder broke into his Oxfordshire mansion, stabbing him multiple times in the chest. Harrison and his wife fought the intruder and detained him for the police. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Beatles January 20, 1988. Wrote the introduction to a biography on sitarist Ravi Shankar .

He played 26 instruments: guitar, sitar, four-string guitar, bass guitar, arp bass, violin, tamboura, dobro, swordmandel, tabla, organ, piano, moog synthesizer, harmonica, autoharp, glockenspiel, vibraphone, xylophone, claves, African drum, conga drum, tympani, ukulele, mandolin, marimba and Jal-Tarang. Son, Dhani Harrison (born 1 August 1978) was a student at Brown University. He and his fellow members of The Beatles were awarded the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1965 Queen's Birthday Honours List. In 1979 he was co-founder, executive producer and principal partner of HandMade Films, a position he held until 1994. Attended Dovedale Road Primary School (now Dovedale Road Junior School) and the Liverpool Institute High School for Boys (now the Liverpool Institute of the Performing Arts). Got a job as an apprentice electrician at age 16 but didn't have the interest to continue it.

With one son a mechanic and another a groundskeeper, father Harry hoped his sons would go into business together once George finished his apprenticeship. Harry let George quit to become a working musician, though, when The Beatles began to get weekly bookings, figuring he was young and could still "start over" if music didn't work out. Liked jelly babies (a softer version of jelly beans). George met Pattie Boyd on the set of A Hard Day's Night (1964). She was engaged at the time, but George kept asking her out until she gave in. They were married in 1966. In 1968 Eric Clapton played guitar on George's "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" on The Beatles ' "White Album". Also, George was at Eric's home in England and wrote "Here Comes the Sun" while skipping a board meeting for the band's company, Apple Corps.

In the early 1970s Eric Clapton fell madly in love with Pattie Boyd (at the time married to Harrison) and wrote "Layla" about her; when she refused to leave George for him, Clapton became so distraught and depressed he turned to heroin and developed a severe addiction. By 1974, feeling abandoned by George's obsession with Indian culture, Pattie left George for Eric and the Harrisons' divorce was finalized in 1977. Two years later, Pattie and Eric were married (they divorced in 1988). Through it all, George, Eric and Pattie remained the best of friends - George attended the Claptons' wedding reception and commented, "I'd rather she was with him than some dope". (Clapton and Harrison called each other "husbands-in-law."). Was the second of The Beatles to become a vegetarian, after Ringo Starr but before Paul McCartney . According to his first wife Pattie Boyd , Harrison would allow neither meat nor fish to be brought into his house.

In January of 2002 the re-release of "My Sweet Lord" reached #1 in the UK, replacing Aaliyah 's "More Than A Woman". It was the first time there have been two consecutive posthumous #1 hits in the UK. Was the first of The Beatles to produce a "solo" album, with his soundtrack album to Joe Massot 's film Wonderwall (1968) ( Paul McCartney had earlier composed the score for The Family Way (1966), but did not produce or play on the recordings). Songs were recorded both in India (featuring Ashish Khan and guests) and England; the English tracks featured Harrison, Ringo Starr , Eric Clapton , Peter Tork (each performing under pseudonyms) and former Beatles rivals The Remo Four, from Liverpool. Wrote an autobiography titled "I Me Mine" in the late 1970s (which he described in the introduction as "the small change of a short lifetime"), and included reproductions of the original handwritten lyrics to nearly all his songs.

The book was originally issued as an exclusive leather-bound edition by Genesis Books for about $350 per copy; a less-expensive hardback edition was later published by Simon and Schuster. Had his own professional 16-track recording studio installed at Friar Park, where nearly all his solo records after "All Things Must Pass" were made (album credits usually mention "Friar Park Studio", or "F.P.S.H.O.T."). In the 1980s Jeff Lynne , used to working with 48-track digital machines, found it startling to have to rethink his approach to record with Harrison, but found it refreshing in the long run (the band Shakespear's Sister also borrowed the studio in the early 1990s, to record "Hormonally Yours"). A controversy arose in the days after Harrison's death, when it turned out his death certificate listed a bogus address; it was revealed he had died at Paul McCartney 's Los Angeles house, whose address they'd wanted to keep secret. McCartney described the late Harrison as "my baby brother".

Harrison was cremated within hours of his death, and his ashes were later scattered along the Ganges River in India, in accordance with his last wishes. Overcame both hepatitis in the mid-1970s (which caused a delay in the release of his album "Thirty-Three and 1/3"), and a cocaine addiction in the early 1980s. Was called "my archangel" by Srila Prabhupada , founder of the Hare Krishna movement. A federal court in New York ruled in 1976 that his song "My Sweet Lord" was a copyright infringement on the 1963 Laurie Records hit "He's So Fine" by The Chiffons . "My Sweet Lord" contained a similar repetition of two musical phrases ("sol-mi-re" and "sol-la-do-la-do") found in "He's So Fine," along with identical harmonies. Although the court found that Harrison did not intend to plagiarize "He's So Fine," it ruled that, having been familiar with the song, he had "subconsciously" copied its melody (Bright Tunes Music Corp. v. Harrisongs Music, Ltd., 420 F.Supp.

177 (S.D.N.Y. Aug 31, 1976). Appeals dragged the case on into the 1990s, with Harrison's former manager Allen Klein becoming the plaintiff when he bought Bright Tunes. Harrison eventually ended up owning both songs, while Klein's reputation suffered from his "changing sides" in the suit. He was the youngest of four children (Louise, Harold Jr. and Peter were his older siblings), and came from the most "normal" home of any of The Beatles . Father Harry drove a Liverpool city bus, while mother Louise gave dance lessons at their home. The Harrisons were common-sense people, but allowed their children to pursue their dreams, and encouraged George to take up music. Mrs. Harrison invited The Beatles over to practice early in their career, and sometimes came to see them perform. The family remained close, even after daughter Louise married and moved to America, and George became famous; Louise frequently made herself available for media interviews about her younger brother, and hosted his early American visits. He provided enough money for his parents to retire comfortably, while his home at Friar Park was a family affair indeed, tended by he and his older brothers.

His mother died of cancer in 1970, and he wrote "Deep Blue" in reaction to her death. His father died (also of cancer) in 1978, having adopted some of his son's spiritual beliefs; George and wife Olivia later related that they'd awoken that same night, to a strange blue light in the room, and a vision of Harry smiling at them. When Lorne Michaels offered The Beatles $3000 to appear on Saturday Night Live (1975), Harrison actually took him up on the offer and performed on the show. The joke was that Michaels was offering $750 per Beatle, and Harrison wanted the full $3000. As a tribute, this appearance was re-aired as part of "Weekend Update" the Saturday after Harrison died. Spoke German, but not fluently Was an ace Monopoly player. Although rightly considered the shyest pf The Beatles , Harrison loved comedy and often associated with Monty Python through the 1970s. Brother-in-law of Mick Fleetwood of Fleetwood Mac (Fleetwood was married to Jenny Boyd , Pattie Boyd 's sister).

In 1978, The Rolling Stones album "Some Girls" was withdrawn from stores after several stars whose photos appeared on the original cover (including Lucille Ball , Raquel Welch , Farrah Fawcett , Lee Majors and Red Buttons ) threatened to sue. The album was re-released with a "censored" cover; Harrison's photo appears on both versions. He joked publicly that he'd sue the Stones "if they removed his photo." Together with Eric Clapton , he wrote the Cream hit "Badge." He also played the song's lead guitar track up to the bridge. After his lung cancer was found to have returned in March 2001, Harrison was operated on in June and had half of one lung removed. By November of that year however the cancer had spread to his brain, making recovery impossible. The only one of The Beatles whose childhood was not marred by personal tragedy. Was actually hurt by the critical savaging of Shanghai Surprise (1986) and its subsequent financial failure, because he had very little to do with it and his name was on the film. In later years he said that his songs were the victims of the film's failure.

Disillusioned with working for a major label, he quickly and hastily recorded "Gone Troppo" in 1982 to fulfill his contract. When asked to renew, he refused. He also refused to do any publicity for the album, which he thought of as second-rate. Due to the shoddy publicity campaign by Warner Brothers for the album, it was a flop and its highest chart position was #108. Harrison decided not to make another album for five years. When he did, the album, "Cloud Nine", was a smash, landing in the #1 spot. After eight years being idle, he decided to tour in 1974 despite a bad voice due to some throat problems. The tour was a critical and commercial disaster, with unfair severe criticism for the opening act of " Ravi Shankar and Friends", Harrison's voice (which was called "Dark Hoarse") and his preaching. He was so disillusioned and angry with the incident that he never toured in America again, only going to Japan in 1992 for a very large sum and Eric Clapton 's back-up band.

Originally submitted his album "Somwhere In England" in 1980 with a psychedelic cover and four rather downbeat songs. Warner Brothers rejected the album and ordered a new cover and four new, more upbeat songs. It was around this time that John Lennon died, and Harrison decided to re-arrange his song "All Those Years Ago" as a tribute to Lennon and sing it himself (he originally thought it should be a Ringo Starr tune). Starr had recorded percussion, which was used in the final track. At the same time Paul McCartney asked if he could come over to George's house so George could do some guitar work on Paul's song "Wanderlust." It was the first time McCartney and Harrison had been together since the break-up of The Beatles in 1970. Harrison asked Paul, wife Linda McCartney and Denny Laine to record backing vocals for his song, "All Those Years Ago." After recording the song, McCartney decided that Harrison didn't need to record the guitar part and he'd use a horn ensemble instead. After three other songs were recorded, and a new photo shot at an art gallery in London, the album was resubmitted and accepted.

Based on the strength of a new Beatles "reunion" (on "All Those Years Ago"), the album was released to critical and commercial excitement. "All Those Years Ago" became Harrison's first top-ten hit in eight years. He was the youngest member of The Beatles . Is portrayed by Chris Cound in The Linda McCartney Story (2000). On 11/11/04 The Beatles were inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame for their outstanding contribution to British music and integral part of British music culture. Is portrayed by Chris O'Neill in Backbeat (1994). After The Beatles broke up, he was the first of them to have a #1 hit as a solo artist ("My Sweet Lord" December 1970). The first song he wrote was "Don't Bother Me", while he was sick in hospital. He said later, "It was an exercise, to see if I *could* write a song". Former schoolmate of Paul McCartney ; the two got acquainted riding the same bus every day, carrying their first guitars. After McCartney joined John Lennon 's Quarrymen, Harrison began turning up at their shows, and filled in when other members weren't available.

Lennon objected to having a "kid" join the band, but McCartney persuaded him. Through good friend Eric Clapton , Delaney Bramlett introduced him to playing slide guitar, which he would use after The Beatles . Though the guitar chord - 7th + sharpened 9th - became known as "The Hendrix Chord" through its heavy use on "Foxy Lady" and "Purple Haze," the 7#9 was actually used several months earlier by Harrison on "Taxman" from The Beatles ' 1966 album "Revolver". He and The Beatles were awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Recording at 7080 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California. Portrayed by Sam Bell in Nowhere Boy (2009). First musician of the pop era to introduce the sitar when he played it on "Norwegian Wood" from the The Beatles ' album "Rubber Soul" (1965). This was the first time the Indian instrument had been played on a pop single. Rivals The Rolling Stones soon followed with sitar accompaniment on their hit "Paint It Black" (1966).

During his November 1976 appearance on Saturday Night Live (1975), he appeared and sang, in a video titled "This Song". It referenced the then popular controversy over the similarity in the melody of his mega-hit "My Sweet Lord"(1971) and that of The Chiffons ' 1963 hit "He's So Fine". In the early 1960s when The Beatles were a backup group for Tony Sheridan , George co-wrote with John Lennon an instrumental, "Cry For A Shadow". The title was a reference to a disbanded British group. Began playing the slide guitar at age 27. At that time, Harrison began to incorporate it into his solo work, which allowed him to mimic many traditional Indian instruments, including the sarangi and the dilruba. Founded his own record label, Dark Horse Records, in 1974. Like fellow member of The Beatles John Lennon , Harrison was known to be a very private person.

Was very good friends with: Eric Clapton , Jeff Lynne , Roy Orbison , Bob Dylan , Elton John , Tom Petty , Phil Collins , Neil Young , Paul Simon , David Gilmour , Pete Townshend , Mick Jagger , Keith Richards , Billy Preston , Neil Aspinall , Neil Innes , Carl Perkins and Roger McGuinn . A devout Monty Python fan. By late 1986, after a substantial break, Harrison felt the desire to make music again. He asked former Electric Light Orchestra lead vocalist, fellow guitarist and fellow musician, Jeff Lynne to co-produce a new album, "Cloud Nine," with him. The album went platinum, after his 1970 multi-platinum album, "All Things Must Pass," 17 years earlier. When he was a young boy he collected photos of racing drivers and their cars; by 12 years of age he had attended his first race, the 1955 British Grand Prix at Aintree. Before the breakup of The Beatles , he purchased and restored the buildings of Friar Park, a 120-room Victorian neo-Gothic mansion in Henley-on-Thames.

In early 1956, he had an epiphany: while riding his bicycle, he heard Elvis Presley 's, "Heartbreak Hotel", playing from a nearby house, and the song piqued his interest in rock and roll. He often sat at the back of the class drawing guitars in his schoolbooks, and later commented, "I was totally into guitars.". The first of The Beatles to wear a mop-top haircut. His idols were: Big Bill Broonzy , George Formby , Django Reinhardt , Chet Atkins , Chuck Berry and Ry Cooder . When it was his final show at Madison Square Garden in New York, he told 11-year-old Julian Lennon to tell his father, John Lennon , "All is forgiven and I still love you." That was the last time Harrison saw Lennon before his death. Was supposed to help Julian Lennon on the slide guitar for the song, "Help Yourself," but wasn't able to make it because he had to attend Eric Clapton 's son's funeral. Instead, George sent Julian the samples. Performed at The Concert for the Natural Law Party Royal Albert Hall in London, England, along with Ringo Starr , Starr's daughter, Lee Starkey and Julian Lennon .

[6 April 1992]. In 1974 a former secretary who was working at A&M Records, Olivia Harrison , had spoken to Harrison many times over the phone. He was impressed and sent a friend to scout her out. Harrison and Olivia met at a party and the two soon formed a romantic relationship, and the two got married after his divorce from Pattie Boyd was final. Was a longtime friend of 'Weird Al' Yankovic . Yankovic wrote a parody of "Got My Mind Set on You", called "(This Song's Just) Six Words Long". It was released as a song off his album "Even Worse". He was inspired by Lonnie Donegan , who taught him how to play the guitar, after listening to Donegan, growing up. During the escalation in Beatlemania from 1964 to 1966, Harrison got through flights by taking uppers and drinking whiskey and coke. Decades later, his memories of this time focused almost entirely on the horrors of airplanes, airports, cars and crowds.

After the breakup of The Beatles , Harrison began a long association with Ringo Starr , who participated in either his or Harrison's songs: "It Don't Come Easy," "Photograph," "Back Off Boogaloo," "I'll Still Love You," and "Wrack My Brain.". He was voted as a guitarist as the 11th of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time, by "Rolling Stone.". Between 1971-2001, he made 27 movies with Handmade Films, and had a remarkable/non-remarkable 60 singles, under a variety of categories. 1 of them went to #1. The only one of The Beatles to have cancer deaths in his family, before the same disease caught up with him. He gave a slang word to the national vocabulary. In The Beatles ' first movie A Hard Day's Night (1964), Harrison used the word "grotty" to describe some items of clothing. "Grotty" (meaning "grotesque") caught on as an actual slang word used frequently in the 1960s. It is still used, albeit sparingly, to this day.

According to John Lennon , Harrison "used to cringe every time he had to say it.". The remaining members of The Beatles , Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr , appeared in both of his videos: "All Those Years Ago", about the death of their own singing partner, John Lennon , and "When We Was Fab", which was used in reference of Beatlemania. Harrison knew Julian Lennon ( John Lennon 's first son) since birth. Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on April 14, 2009. He asked Peter Tork to record some banjo for the score of Wonderwall (1968). Tork's banjo playing was featured in the film. Was posthumously honored with The Recording Academy's Lifetime Achievement Award. [8 February 2015]. He became the first recipient of the Billboard Century Award, an honour presented to music artists for significant bodies of work. [1992]. The last song he wrote was "A Horse To Water.". Attended the funeral of Linda McCartney ( Paul McCartney 's first wife), on 8 June 1998.

George Harrison - School Days 'Sneak Peek' - Beatles Liverpool and More George Harrison - School Days 'Sneak Peek' George was born on 25th February 1943 George was born in a small two up - two down terrace house at No 12 Arnorld Grove, Wavertree, Liverpool, the youngest of four children. Shortly after he was born his parents Harold and Louise to George to the local Catholic church Our Lady Of Good Help to be baptised. A photo of the church were George was baptised, and a copy of the church register showing the baptism lines for George The register is written in Latin and reads as follows: George Harrison - Date of Birth 25th Feb 1943, Date of Baptism 14th March 1943 Parents - Harold and Louise Harrison ( Formerly French). Godmother - Maria Fox The Harrison's moved from Arnold Grove to the Speke housing estate to 25 Upton Green, when George was of school age.

His first school was Dovedale School which was to be the same school as John Lennon, George knew of John at the school because his older brother Peter was in the same school year as John, but George never really bothered with John at that time. The Dovedale School Admission Register with the entry for George which reads: Entry No 1833 Name - George Harrison, Date of Birth - 25/2/43. Address - 25 Upton Green, Speke. An early school photograph of George, can you spot him? He is 2nd on the left in the back row. After leaving Dovedale School it was time to go to the Seniors, George passed his 11plus exam and was excepted into the Liverpool Institute High School in Liverpool City Centre, another pupil at the "Inny" but a year above him was Paul McCartney. George and Paul would travel to school on the same bus from Speke to the Inny, and became friends through their interest in Rock-n-Roll.

Institute School Photograph - George Harrison Institute School Photograph - Paul McCartney George Harrison - That's The Way God Planned It Publishing date 17th August 2013, paperback = £12.99 plus P&P Kindle Edition available @ £4.69 Kindle edition click here Reviews from Amazon Readers By BeatleBangs1964 TOP 1000 REVIEWER I loved this book. Kevin Roach has plainly researched the French and Harrison families and previously unpublished photos and documents have been included. You get a clear picture of the two families who created George Harrison. Louisa Woollam, George's maternal grandmother is repeatededly called "Louise" throughout the book. Other books report her name as being Louisa, her fourth child and third daughter Louise, a variation of Louisa is plainly her namesake. Another question was when Harry Harrison and Louise French were reported as having married in May of 1931. All other books and documents record the Harrison-French union as having taken place in May of 1930. Their first child, daughter Louise was born over a year later on August 16, 1931.

Roach suggests that the union, which did not take place in a church was because Louise was already expecting their daughter. No place else has this ever been suggested or reported. That is a question as to why and how this was stated in this book. Readers are treated to stories about the various members of the Harrison and French families. Readers see a picture of Harry's father, Henry Harrison who died in 1914 during WWI at Mons. (Hunter Davies' mentions this briefly in The Beatles: The Authorised Biography . All Davies says is that Henry Harrison was killed in Mons and that his widow, Jane was "put off services" and "didn't want her son to enlist.") Bonus treats include stories about the lives of the Harrison and French families and readers get a sense of both sets of George's grandparents and great grandparents. I loved the parts about the church Louise French attended for many years. The church was lovely and a most welcome addition to and a very important part of the French/Harrison story. A devoted Catholic, Louise had all 4 of her little Harrisons baptized at Our Lady of Good Help, their neighborhood parish. Each Harrison child's baptismal certificate is included, along with those of Harold Sr. and Louise French.

An interesting aside: Louise and her children's baptismal certificates are written in Latin and the names inscribed on each are Latinized. Harold Sr., who was not baptized in a Catholic church had a baptismal certificate written entirely in English. An additional aside: the two oldest Harrison children, Louise and little Harold were baptized on the same day. Lou was nearly 3 and her brother little more than a newborn at the time. (George's Catholic roots stayed with him and bore fruit. He kept a beautiful statue of Mother Mary on his grounds at Friar Park.) Another treat was the painting of the lovely house and garden where Louisa Woollam grew up. Gardening and a love for flora ran on both sides of the Harrison-French families and it should come as no surprise that George loved gardening and saw himself as a gardener. There is a lot of Louise French in George - he was Harold Sr. from the eyes up and Louise French from the nose down. In 1965, Louise told her son's fan club members that she thought George looked like her dad, a tall man from Ireland.

An avid gardener herself, Louise chafed at the move from her original home with Harry to the famed home in Speke because she was displeased with the way many neighborhood kids trampled her garden. In 1965 when George bought the senior Harrisons a lovely home in Appleton, he made sure there was plenty of land for them to garden, much to their delight. This book is a gift that keeps giving. Readers will thank Kevin Roach for his tireless contributions and research and George's sister Louise and their cousin Anthony French for their invaluable input and contributions. Thank you! By Chris - This review is from: George Harrison That's The Way God Planned It. (Kindle Edition) he was a remarkable man i enjoyed reading this he viewed life in a very special way .a great soul.

Beatle George Harrison's sister Louise, 82, lives broke and alone in rural Missouri | Daily Mail Online REVEALED: Sister of late Beatle George Harrison, 82, lives broke and alone in rural Missouri after his family 'cut her out of his $300million will and stopped the allowance he paid to support her' Louise Harrison is living in a very modest home in rural Missouri The 82-year-old lives alone and has been cut-off from the music legend's will She still has to work - managing a Beatles tribute band Claims to not be bitter that she was cut off from a $2,000 monthly pension after the Beatle died from cancer in November 2001 No longer has any contact with her sister-in-law Olivia or nephew Dhani BBC - Liverpool Local History - Beatles - George Harrison's Houses Real Player required: More info George Harrison was born at 12 Arnold Grove, Wavertree, on 25th February 1943. He was the youngest of four children - one girl and three boys.

His father, Harold, was a former ship's steward with the White Star Line, who came ashore in 1936 and found work 'on the buses': firstly as a conductor, then as a driver. His mother Louise (née French) came from a large, close-knit family of Irish origin. She was a Roman Catholic, but Harold was not. Louise's mother lived in Albert Grove, just around the corner from the Harrison's house, and George recalled regularly slipping out of the back door and along the 'jiggers' to visit his grandmother. No.12 Arnold Grove was built in the 1890s as a two-up, two-down terraced house, just off Wavertree High Street. It was (and is) very small, yet Harold and Louise lived there with their four children until George was about six years old. The rent, they recalled, was ten shillings a week. The house where George grew up. George's memories of the house will strike a chord with many others brought up in the same era: "The front room was never used. It had the posh lino and a three-piece suite, was freezing cold and no-one ever went in it.

We huddled together in the kitchen, where the fire was, with the kettle on, and a little iron cooking stove" The family kept cockerels for a time, in the paved yard at the back. It also contained 'a one-foot-wide flowerbed' and, of course, the toilet at the back and zinc bathtub hanging on the wall. Harold and Louise had been on Liverpool Corporation's re-housing list for about 18 years when, in 1949, the opportunity came for them to move to a brand new council house on the Speke estate: at 25 Upton Green. George continued to attend Dovedale Primary School, however, until progressing to the Liverpool Institute. A fellow pupil at Dovedale was John Lennon, though he and George were unaware of one another owing to the two-and-a-half year age gap. In 1965, having become rich and famous, George bought his parents a bungalow in Appleton, outside Warrington. Text © COPYRIGHT 2002 Mike Chitty

Question: Harold and Louise were the parents of which member of The Beatles?
Answer: George Harrison